A nanogap-enhanced SERS nanotag-based lateral flow assay for ultrasensitive and simultaneous monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 S and NP antigens.

A lateral flow assay (LFA) strip based on dual 5,5'-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB)-encoded satellite Fe3O4@Au (Mag@Au) SERS tags with nanogap is reported for  ultrasensitive and simultaneous diagnosis of two SARS-CoV-2 functional proteins. Composed of Fe3O4 core, satellite gold shell with nanogaps, and double-layer DTNB, the Mag@Au nanoparticles with an average size of 238 nm were designed as multifunctional tags to efficiently enrich the target SARS-CoV-2 protein from complex samples, significantly enhancing the SERS signal of the LFA strip and provide quantitative SERS detection of analyte on test lines. The developed dual DTNB-encoded satellite Mag@Au-based LFA allowed simultaneous quantification of spike (S) protein and nucleocapsid (NP) protein with detection limits of 23 pg mL-1 and 2 pg mL-1, respectively, lower than commercial ELISA kits and reported SERS-LFA detection system-based Au NPs and Fe3O4@3 nm Au MNPs. This magnetic SERS-LFA also showed high performance of multi-variant strain detection and further distinguished clinical samples of Omicron variant infection, demonstrating the potential of in situ detection of respiratory virus diseases.

Optimal vitamin D supplement dosage for improving insulin resistance in children and adolescents with overweight/obesity: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.

PURPOSE: We conducted a network meta-analysis which aims to evaluate the comparative efficacy of different supplementation dosages of vitamin D on cardiometabolic and bone-metabolic indicators as well as insulin resistance in children and adolescents with overweight/obesity. METHODS: Eligible studies published before December 10, 2022 were retrieved from PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science. Mean difference and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used to express pooled estimates. Network meta-analysis of multiple doses, including low (< 1000 IU/day, LDS), medium (1000-2000 IU/day, MDS), high (2000-4000 IU/day, HDS), and extremely high (> 4000 IU/day, EHDS) dosage strategy, was conducted using STATA/MP 14.0. RESULTS: Our network meta-analysis of 15 RCTs suggested that, compared with placebo and LDS, EHDS was increased 25-(OH)-D, with a pooled MD of 8.65 (95% CI 4.72-12.58) and 7.66 (95% CI 0.91-14.41), respectively. Meanwhile, EHDS also decreased ho meostasis model assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) (MD: - 0.74; 95% CI: - 1.45 to - 0.04) and C-reactive protein (CRP) (MD: - 18.99; 95% CI - 21.60 to - 16.38), and EHDS was also better than LDS (MD: - 18.47; 95% CI - 20.66 to - 16.28) and MDS (MD: - 19.69; 95% CI - 22.17 to - 17.21) in decreasing CRP. Ranking probability suggested that EHDS ranked best for increasing 25-(OH)-D, and decreasing HOMA-IR and CRP, with a probability of 86.1%, 83.1%, and 76.6%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The results of our network meta-analysis suggest that EHDS may be the best strategy for vitamin D supplementation to reduce inflammatory responses as well as improve insulin resistance in children and adolescents with overweight/obesity. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42023387775.

Helicobacter pylori infection and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: There is a link between Helicobacter pylori (HP) infection and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) with nonspecific digestive symptoms. Nonetheless, whether HP infection is associated with SIBO in adults remains unclear. Based on a meta-analysis, we evaluated this relationship. RESULTS: Observational studies relevant to our research were identified by searching PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and the Web of Science. We evaluated between-study heterogeneity using the Cochrane Q test and estimated the I2 statistic. Random-effects models were used when significant heterogeneity was observed; otherwise, fixed-effects models were used. Ten datasets from eight studies, including 874 patients, were involved in the meta-analysis. It was shown that HP infection was related to a higher odds of SIBO (odds ratio [OR]: 1.82, 95% confidence interval: 1.29 to 2.58, p < 0.001) with mild heterogeneity (p for Cochrane Q test = 0.11, I2 = 7%). Subgroup analyses showed that HP infection was related to SIBO in young patients (mean age < 48 years, OR: 2.68, 95% CI: 1.67 to 4.28, p < 0.001; I2 = 15%) but not in older patients (mean age ≥ 48 years, OR: 1.15, 95% CI: 0.69 to 1.92, p < 0.60; I2 = 1%; p for subgroup difference = 0.02). Subgroup analyses further indicated that the association was not significantly affected by the country of study, comorbidities, exposure to proton pump inhibitors, or methods of evaluating HP infection and SIBO. CONCLUSIONS: HP infection may be related to SIBO in adults, which supports the detection of SIBO in patients with digestive symptoms and HP infection.

Role of the CXCR6/CXCL16 axis in autoimmune diseases.

The C-X-C motif ligand 16, or CXCL16, is a chemokine that belongs to the ELR - CXC subfamily. Its function is to bind to the chemokine receptor CXCR6, which is a G protein-coupled receptor with 7 transmembrane domains. The CXCR6/CXCL16 axis has been linked to the development of numerous autoimmune diseases and is connected to clinical parameters that reflect disease severity, activity, and prognosis in conditions such as multiple sclerosis, autoimmune hepatitis, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease, and psoriasis. CXCL16 is expressed in various immune cells, such as dendritic cells, monocytes, macrophages, and B cells. During autoimmune diseases, CXCL16 can facilitate the adhesion of immune cells like monocytes, T cells, NKT cells, and others to endothelial cells and dendritic cells. Additionally, sCXCL16 can regulate the migration of CXCR6-expressing leukocytes, which includes CD8+ T cells, CD4+ T cells, NK cells, constant natural killer T cells, plasma cells, and monocytes. Further investigation is required to comprehend the intricate interactions between chemokines and the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases. It remains to be seen whether the CXCR6/CXCL16 axis represents a new target for the treatment of these conditions.

Repeated fluctuation of Cu2+ concentration during photocatalytic purification of SMZ-Cu2+ combined pollution: Behavior, mechanism and application.

Although the effect of Cu2+ on antibiotic removal during photocatalytic reaction has been studied in depth, there is less known about the effect of antibiotics on Cu2+ removal. In this study, we report for the first time that, during the photocatalytic purification of sulfamerazine (SMZ) and Cu2+ combined pollution, Cu2+ concentration showed an obvious five-stage fluctuation, which was completely different from the simple promotion or inhibition reported in previous studies. By employing HPLC-MS analysis and density functional theory (DFT) calculation, the repeated fluctuation of Cu2+ concentration was found to be closely related to the SMZ degradation process, mainly resulting from solution pH drop and formation of Cu-containing intermediates which acted as sacrificial agents for Cu2+ reduction. In addition, compared with the SMZ-free system, the presence of SMZ can greatly enhance the deep removal of Cu2+ (minimum Cu2+ concentration was only 0.17 mg/L vs. 1.28 mg/L without SMZ), and there was a wide time interval to ensure the efficient recovery of Cu metal. More interestingly, the in-situ obtained Cu-decorated TiO2 photocatalyst performed well in water splitting, nitrogen fixation and bacterial sterilization. Results of this study confirmed the great potential of photocatalytic technology in purifying antibiotic-heavy metal combined pollution.

Transcriptomic Profiles of Splenic CD19+ B Cells in Mice Chronically Infected With the Larval Echinococcus granulosus.

Background: We previously reported that the larval Echinococcus granulosus (E. granulosus) infection can expand the population of regulatory B cells in mice, thereby inhibiting the anti-infective immunity. However, the underlying mechanism is still largely unknown. This study further investigated the holistic transcriptomic profiles of total splenic B cells following the chronic infection of the parasite. Methods: The infection model of larval E. granulosus was established by intraperitoneal inoculation with 2000 protoscolexes. Magnetic-Activated Cell Separation (MACS) was used to isolate the total splenic B cells. RNA sequencing was performed to screen the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) after infection. The expression of selected DEGs was verified using qRT-PCR. Gene Ontology (GO) analysis, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis, and Co-expression network analysis were applied to predict these DEGs' underlying biological processes, pathways, and interactions respectively. Results: A total of 413 DEGs were identified in larval E. granulosus infected B cells, including 303 up- and 110 down-regulated genes. Notably, most DEGs related to inflammation and chemotaxis were significantly upregulated after infection. In line with these changes, significant expression upregulation of DEGs associated with fatty acid oxidation, lipid synthesis, lipolysis, lipid transport, and cholesterol biosynthesis, were observed in infected B cells. Co-expression network analysis showed an intimate interaction between these DEGs associated with immune and metabolism. Conclusions: The present study revealed that the larval E. granulosus infection induces metabolic reprogramming of B cells, which provides a novel clue to clarify the immunoregulatory mechanism of B cells in parasitic infection.

77Se-13C based dipolar correlation experiments to map selenium sites in microcrystalline proteins.

Sulfur-containing sites in proteins are of great importance for both protein structure and function, including enzymatic catalysis, signaling pathways, and recognition of ligands and protein partners. Selenium-77 is an NMR active spin-1/2 nucleus that shares many physiochemical properties with sulfur and can be readily introduced into proteins at sulfur sites without significant perturbations to the protein structure. The sulfur-containing amino acid methionine is commonly found at protein-protein or protein-ligand binding sites. Its selenium-containing counterpart, selenomethionine, has a broad chemical shift dispersion useful for NMR-based studies of complex systems. Methods such as (1H)-77Se-13C double cross polarization or {77Se}-13C REDOR could be valuable to map the local environment around selenium sites in proteins but have not been demonstrated to date. In this work, we explore these dipolar transfer mechanisms for structural characterization of the GB1 V39SeM variant of the model protein GB1 and demonstrate that 77Se-13C based correlations can be used to map the local environment around selenium sites in proteins. We have found that the general detection limit is ~ 5 Å, but longer range distances up to ~ 7 Å can be observed as well. This study establishes a framework for the future characterization of selenium sites at protein-protein or protein-ligand binding interfaces.

Metabolomics Analysis of Splenic CD19+ B Cells in Mice Chronically Infected With Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato Protoscoleces.

Background: The larval stages of Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato (E. granulosus s.l) infection can alter B cell function and affect host anti-infective immunity, but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. The newly emerging immunometabolism highlights that several metabolites are key factors in determining the fate of immune cells, which provides a new insight for exploring how larval E. granulosus s.l. infection remodels B cell function. This study investigated the metabolomic profiles of B cells in mice infected with E. granulosus s.l. protoscoleces (PSC). Results:Total CD19+ B cells, purified from the spleen of infected mice, showed significantly increased production of IL-6, TNF-α, and IL-10 after exposure to LPS in vitro. Moreover, the mRNA expression of metabolism related enzymes in B cells was remarkably disordered post infection. In addition, differential metabolites were identified in B cells after infection. There were 340 differential metabolites (83 upregulated and 257 downregulated metabolites) identified in the positive ion model, and 216 differential metabolites (97 upregulated and 119 downregulated metabolites) identified in the negative ion mode. Among these, 64 differential metabolites were annotated and involved in 68 metabolic pathways, including thyroid hormone synthesis, the metabolic processes of glutathione, fructose, mannose, and glycerophospholipid. Furthermore, several differential metabolites such as glutathione, taurine, and inosine were validated to regulate the cytokine production in LPS stimulated B cells. Conclusion:Infection with the larval E. granulosus s.l. causes metabolic reprogramming in the intrinsic B cells of mice, which provides the first evidence for understanding the role and mechanism of B cells in parasite anti-infective immunity from the viewpoint of immunometabolism.

Evaluation of practical application potential of a photocatalyst: Ultimate apparent photocatalytic activity.

Suffered from rapid recombination of electrons and holes, apparent photocatalytic activity (APA) of all photocatalysts can never achieve their theoretical ultimate values. But the upper limit of practical APA is of great significance to evaluate the practical application potential of a photocatalyst. Thus, in this work, the concept of ultimate apparent photocatalytic activity (UAPA) was firstly proposed and a convenient evaluation method was first established based on the nature that EDTA-2Na can exclusively scavenge photo-excited holes, and methyl orange (MO) is mainly attacked by superoxide radical (O2-) which is produced instantly by photo-excited electrons. From a macro perspective, six popular photocatalysts were designedly selected to verify the feasibility and application scope of the proposed UAPA evaluation method. Moreover, O2- production rate and photocurrent intensity were measured by spectroscopy and spectrum analyses, and theoretical carrier concentrations were calculated by density functional theory (DFT) to further confirm the rationality and reliability of the proposed method. Positive responses of all the tests guarantee that the proposed UAPA could precisely evaluate the application potential of a photocatalyst and rank the photocatalysts according to their practical potential.

Sulfur-doped graphitic carbon nitride for Tm:YAIO3 laser operation at 2.3 µm.

We report on the first, to the best of our knowledge, passive Q-switching operation at 2.3 µm passively based on Tm:YAIO3 (Tm:YAP) 3H4→3H5 transition with sulfur-doped graphitic carbon nitride (g-gC3N4) as the saturable absorber. Sulfur-doping engineering in g-C3N4 was manifested to enhance its mid-infrared nonlinear saturable absorption characteristics, which was confirmed by the conventional open-aperture Z-scan experiment with the excitation at 2.3 µm. The large effective nonlinear absorption coefficient of S-gC3N4 was determined to be -0.68cm/GW, indicating the remarkable MIR optical response. Initiated by S-gC3N4, a passively Q-switched laser operating at 2274.6 nm was configured with a-cut 3.0 at.% Tm:YAP as the gain medium. Stable Q-switching pulses were generated with the shortest pulse width of 140 ns, corresponding to the maximum peak power of 21.8 W. The experimental results reveal the effectiveness of sulfur doping to improve the performance of g-C3N4 in the MIR pulse generation.

Facile synthesis of highly crystalline g-C3N4 nanosheets with remarkable visible light photocatalytic activity for antibiotics removal.

g-C3N4 has attracted much attention in photocatalysis field because of its good visible light response. However, its photocatalytic activity is still greatly limited by fast carriers recombination and small specific surface. In order to promote carriers separation and pollutants adsorption, a facile synthesis scheme combining hydrothermal method with secondary calcination process under N2 gas protection was developed, and highly crystalline g-C3N4 nanosheets (HCCNNS) were successfully prepared. During ciprofloxacin (CIP) and sulfamethazine (SMZ) degradation, it showed excellent visible light photocatalytic activity, wherein CIP and SMZ with 10 mg/L could achieve degradation efficiency of 98.4% and 96.9% in 60 min under visible light irradiation. Compared with conventional g-C3N4, the degradation rate constants were enhanced by 6.9 and 5.8 times, respectively. From the perspectives of morphology, optical property and surface chemistry, the ultra-high activity of HCCNNS is mainly attributed to its highly crystalline structure and nanosheet morphology, which not only reduce the carriers transfer resistance, promote the pollutants adsorption capability, but also expand the light absorption range, and promote the carriers separation. Furthermore, the synthesis procedure of HCCNNS possesses the nature of high yield and excellent cost performance, thus, HCCNNS possesses great potential for mass production and practical application for antibiotics removal.

Comparison of gut microbiota structure and Actinobacteria abundances in healthy young adults and elderly subjects: a pilot study.

BACKGROUND: The aim was to determine the potential association of the gut microbiota composition, especially the abundance of Actinobacteria, as well as the differentiation of functional and resistance genes with age (young adults vs elderly subjects) in China. RESULTS: The patterns of relative abundance of all bacteria isolated from fecal samples differed between young adults and elderly subjects, but the alpha diversity (Chao1 P = 0.370, Shannon P = 0.560 and Simpson P = 0.270) and beta diversity (ANOSIM R = 0.031, P = 0.226) were not significantly different. There were 3 Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) metabolic pathways (carbon metabolism, inositol phosphate metabolism, and sesquiterpenoid and triterpenoid biosynthesis) and 7 antibiotic resistant genes (ARGs) (macrolide lincosamide-streptogramin B (MLSB), tetracycline, aminoglycoside, sulfonamide, fosmidomycin, lincomycin, and vancomycin) that showed significant differences between the 2 groups (all P < 0.05). The abundance of Actinomycetes was enriched (about 2.4-fold) in young adults. Bifidobacteria dominated in both young adults and elderly subjects, with overall higher abundances in young adults (P > 0.05). Only the Bifidobacterium_dentium species showed significant differences between the 2 groups (P = 0.013), with a higher abundance in elderly subjects but absent in young adults. CONCLUSIONS: The present study revealed that there were 3 KEGG metabolic pathways and 7 ARGs as well as enhanced Bifidobacterium_dentium species abundance in elderly compared to young subjects.

Alumina-mediated photocatalytic degradation of hexachlorobenzene in aqueous system: Kinetics and mechanism.

Five kinds of Al2O3 were characterized by SEM, TEM, FT-IR and BET surface area, and then used as carriers to investigate the photochemical removal of hexachlorobenzene (HCB) in aqueous system. The results showed that HCB coated on the surfaces of all Al2O3 could be photodegraded rapidly, and Neutral-Al2O3 presented the best performance. Meanwhile, the efficient removal of HCB in real water matrices, including tap water, river water and secondary clarifier effluent showed the potential practical application of Al2O3. EPR and theoretical calculation revealed the generation of hydroxyl radicals on Al2O3 surface under 500 W Xe lamp irradiation. Nine intermediates and a small amount of Cl- were identified by GC/MS, LC/MS and IC analysis, which was further verified by transition state calculations. These results can provide a new technique for HCB removal in water and wastewaters, and give more insights into the environmental ecological risk assessment of this pollutant.

Effective blockage of chloride ion quenching and chlorinated by-product generation in photocatalytic wastewater treatment.

Photocatalytic degradation of pollutants in high salinity wastewater usually shows extremely low activities and produces highly toxic by-products, often related to the presence of excess chloride ion (Cl-). Herein, we report for the first time that involvement of Cl- (quenching active species and generating chlorinated by-products) could be effectively blocked during photocatalytic processes. Based on a comprehensive investigation of its mechanism, we found that Cl- could quench superoxide radicals (O2-) through a cyclic indirect quenching model with holes (h+) and hydroxyl radicals (OH) quenching as "initiators". Thus, scavenging h+ and OH could successfully block the chain reactions between Cl- and O2-, and photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange (a refractory dye, with O2- as dominant attacking species) could be enhanced by nearly 50 times, even when Cl- content was up to 10 wt%. More importantly, both HPLC-MS analyses and DFT calculation validated that, by blocking its quenching effect, Cl- could be successfully excluded from the pollutant degradation processes, thus preventing the generation of toxic chlorinated by-products. This work provides new insights into control of chlorinated by-products and proposes feasible strategies to extend photocatalytic technology in high salinity wastewater.

Molecularly imprinted carbon nanosheets supported TiO2: Strong selectivity and synergic adsorption-photocatalysis for antibiotics removal.

In order to achieve strong specific recognition and remarkable synergy between adsorption and photocatalysis, carbon nanosheets supported TiO2 (CT) was designed and embellished by molecular imprinting technology with ciprofloxacin (CIP) as template. The molecular imprinted CT (CT-MI) product exhibited remarkable synergy of adsorption-photocatalysis and high selectivity in both aspects, benefitted from specific recognition of imprinted layer, strong carbon adsorption and electroconductivity, and enhanced photocatalysis. Compared to the competitive pollutant, sulfamethoxazole (SMZ) in this study, selectivity coefficient was 7.2 for adsorption and 3.2 for photocatalysis, respectively. This is superior to most of the imprinted photocatalysts reported in the literature. In addition, effect of mass ratio between TiO2 matrix to imprinted polymers, as well as water quality and composition, to the performance of final product was studied and favorable conditions were proposed. Electron transfer mode, selective recognition mode, and antibiotics degradation mechanism and pathways were also illustrated based on trapping experiments and HPLC-MS technology etc. This study confirmed that alliance between molecular imprinting, carbon nanosheets and well dispersed photocatalyst possessed broad prospect of applications in specific recognition and selective degradation of a highly toxic pollutant in a variety of mixed systems.

77Se NMR Probes the Protein Environment of Selenomethionine.

Sulfur is critical for the correct structure and proper function of proteins. Yet, lacking a sensitive enough isotope, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments are unable to deliver for sulfur in proteins the usual wealth of chemical, dynamic, and structural information. This limitation can be circumvented by substituting sulfur with selenium, which has similar physicochemical properties and minimal impact on protein structures but possesses an NMR compatible isotope (77Se). Here we exploit the sensitivity of 77Se NMR to the nucleus' chemical milieu and use selenomethionine as a probe for its proteinaceous environment. However, such selenium NMR spectra of proteins currently resist a reliable interpretation because systematic connections between variations of system variables and changes in 77Se NMR parameters are still lacking. To start narrowing this knowledge gap, we report here on a biological 77Se magnetic resonance data bank based on a systematically designed library of GB1 variants in which a single selenomethionine was introduced at different locations within the protein. We recorded the resulting isotropic 77Se chemical shifts and relaxation times for six GB1 variants by solution-state 77Se NMR. For four of the GB1 variants we were also able to determine the chemical shift anisotropy tensor of SeM by solid-state 77Se NMR. To enable interpretation of the NMR data, the structures of five of the GB1 variants were solved by X-ray crystallography to a resolution of 1.2 Å, allowing us to unambiguously determine the conformation of the selenomethionine. Finally, we combine our solution- and solid-state NMR data with the structural information to arrive at general insights regarding the execution and interpretation of 77Se NMR experiments that exploit selenomethionine to probe proteins.

Exploring the Relationship Between Clostridium thermocellum JN4 and Thermoanaerobacterium thermosaccharolyticum GD17.

Characterizing and engineering microbial communities for lignocellulosic biofuel production has received widespread attention. Previous research has established that Clostridium thermocellum JN4 and Thermoanaerobacterium thermosaccharolyticum GD17 coculture significantly improves overall cellulosic biofuel production efficiency. Here, we investigated this interaction and revealed the mechanism underlying the improved efficiency observed. In contrast to the previously reported mutualistic relationship, a harmful effect toward C. thermocellum JN4 was observed in these microbial consortia. Although T. thermosaccharolyticum GD17 relieves the carbon catabolite repression of C. thermocellum JN4 regarding obtaining more cellobiose or glucose released from lignocellulose, T. thermosaccharolyticum GD17 significantly hampers the growth of C. thermocellum JN4 in coculture. The increased formation of end products is due to the strong competitive metabolic advantage of T. thermosaccharolyticum GD17 over C. thermocellum JN4 in the conversion of glucose or cellobiose into final products. The possibility of controlling and rebalancing these microbial consortia to modulate cellulose degradation was achieved by adding T. thermosaccharolyticum GD17 stimulants into the system. As cellulolytic bacteria are usually at a metabolic disadvantage, these discoveries may apply to a large proportion of cellulosic biofuel-producing microbial consortia. These findings provide a reference for engineering efficient and modular microbial consortia for modulating cellulosic conversion.

SOX11 promotes osteoarthritis through induction of TNF-α.

OBJECTIVE: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative disease and the molecular mechanism of OA remains unclear. Transcription factor SOX11 has been proved to be involved in the development progress of OA. The present study aimed to evaluate the potential function of SOX11 during the development of OA. METHODS: SOX11 expression in patients with OA and health donator was determined with qRT-PCR. Subsequently, in vitro OA model was established by treating the chondrocyte cells CHON-001 with IL-1ß. Next, we validated the function of SOX11 in in vitro OA model by using siRNAs. Finally, the relationship between SOX11 and TNF-α was explored. RESULTS: SOX11 was upregulated in patients with OA and in IL-1ß treated cells. IL-1ß significantly increased both the mRNA and protein levels of MMP13 and cleaved caspase 3, while decreased collagen II and aggrecan in CHON-001 cells. In addition, knockdown of SOX11 could significantly decrease IL-1ß-induced apoptosis in CHON-001 cells. Meanwhile, IL-1ß induced OA like phenomenon was significantly reversed by siRNA interference. Moreover, inhibition of SOX11 decreased the level of TNF-α in patients with OA and in IL-1ß treated cell supernatant. CONCLUSION: Inhibition of SOX11 could improve IL-1ß-induced OA like phenomenon in CHON-001 cells, which suggesting SOX11 played an important role during the pathogenesis of OA. Thus, we hypothesized that SOX11 could be a potential target for the treatment of patients with OA.

Nitritation-anammox process - A realizable and satisfactory way to remove nitrogen from high saline wastewater.

In this study, acclimation of freshwater nitritation-anammox sludge to remove nitrogen in high saline and hypersaline wastewater was evaluated, during which the microbes activity and microbial community revolution were revealed to understand the fate of a nitritation-anammox process (SNAP) in response to increasing salt stress. By enhanced aeration, the SNAP system can treat saline (3%) ammonium-rich (185 mg/L) wastewater after gradual adaption. Hypersalinity (5%) caused final deterioration of the SNAP system due to a severe inhibition on anammox activity. Genera Kuenenia (anammox), Nitrosomonas (AOB) and Nitrosovibrio (AOB) bacteria were salt adaptable microbes, while genus Nitrospira (NOB) bacteria were sensitive to salinity. Under the enhanced aeration, AOB bacteria could bear 3% salinity with possible enriched ammonia monooxygenase to stimulate the conversion of ammonium to nitrite by producing more intermediate-hydroxylamine, which could alleviate the negative effect of insufficient hydroxylamine oxidase members in AOB bacteria.

Enhanced degradation of ciprofloxacin by graphitized mesoporous carbon (GMC)-TiO2 nanocomposite: Strong synergy of adsorption-photocatalysis and antibiotics degradation mechanism.

In order to achieve remarkable synergy between adsorption and photocatalysis for antibiotics elimination from water, in this study, a graphitized mesoporous carbon (GMC)-TiO2 nanocomposite was successfully synthesized by an extended resorcinol-formaldehyde (R-F) method. In the composite, the lamellar GMC nanosheets possessed large specific surface area and mesoporous structure, and could adsorb and enrich antibiotics effectively. This could not only reduce the antibiotic concentration in water shortly, but also greatly increase the chances for antibiotics to contact with and be degraded by photocatalysts and active species. Interestingly, GMC could also facilitate the transportation of photogenerated electrons to further improve the photocatalytic efficiency of TiO2, and 15 mg/L ciprofloxacin (CIP) could be totally mineralized in 1.5 h. Meanwhile, the biological inhibition of reaction solution on luminescence bacteria decreased obviously with antibiotics degradation until non-toxicity, reinforcing the thorough elimination of antibiotics. Besides, from the viewpoint of organic chemistry, several plausible CIP degradation pathways were established using HPLC-MS technique, and an interesting intermediate with five-membered ring structure was firstly proposed, which is helpful to deeply understand CIP degradation. Strong synergy between adsorption and photocatalysis, along with quick and efficient antibiotics elimination, double confirm the great potential of GMC-TiO2 nanocomposite for practical antibiotic wastewater purification.